Citizenship Education and Social Studies: An Historical Analysis of Citizenship Education in the Social Studies 9 Curriculum

This paper examines the influence that political, societal, and educational trends and characteristics have on citizenship education within official curriculum documents. The Social Studies 9 curricular documents of 1971, 1991, 1999, and 2008 are analyzed in order to determine the type of citizen and citizenship education that was promoted during those years. The analysis considers only the official curriculum documents for the period in question, as opposed to actual classroom practice. The curricular documents are analysed in light of prevailing currents and countercurrents in Canada during the period from 1970 to the present and a typology of citizenship education ranging from traditional to social activist and reconstructionist. The interpretations and conclusions highlight a history of competing and complimentary currents and counter-currents within the documents and a movement in citizenship education from less active roles for students to increasingly socially and globally aware citizens which continually rests on democratic values. The documents also highlight the influence of regional development concerning the role of participation and the natural environment in citizenship education in Saskatchewan.